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5 June 2007
Brit-com Still Bigoted
Irony isn’t an excuse, apparently
British comedy is as bigoted as the days of 70s ‘darky’ bashing, according to a new academic report.
Susan Becker of the University of Teeside and Lloyd Peters of Salford University presented a paper that said stereotypes were reinforced by modern comedy.
"Comedy is utilising stigma," they said. "A sign or mark which designates the bearer as less than normal people [is] at the heart of the joke."
They were particularly miffed about Little Britain’s sketches about Thai bride Ting Tong which was described as ‘insidious racism’, though SSP was just as offended by the fact that the sketch wasn’t funny.
TV in the 1970s included such tasteful classics as Love Thy Neighbour - a sitcom about the perils of having a black neighbour - and Mind Your Language - the story of a bunch of silly foreigners learning English. Surely Matt and Dave weren’t taking notes…
